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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. roll — a list
  3. cell — in biology
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. club — for dancing
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. club — a group
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. wound — an injury
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. club — for golf
  13. rule — a law
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. cell — a phone
  17. rule — government
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. rock — music
  20. roll — a cake
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. wound — an injury
  24. roll — on a roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com